Jesus Didn't Pray to the Fig Tree, He Spoke: A Night of Testimonies

Sermon outline

Some mountains need more than prayer: like Jesus with the fig tree, speak to them in faith, do not be discouraged when nothing seems to happen at first, and keep making a demand on God until they move.

1. Jesus did not pray to the fig tree; He spoke

   Reading Mark 11, he points out that when Jesus found the fig tree with nothing but leaves, He did not pray about it: He spoke to it, and the disciples heard Him. He asks them to bank this in their spirit. Prayer is right and necessary, but there are times when you need to speak.

   “Jesus did not pray, he said.”

   • Mark 11:12-14

2. It may look as if nothing happened

   When Jesus first spoke, the tree still looked fine; only the next morning did Peter notice it had withered from the roots. So when you speak and see no change straight away, do not be discouraged. After you speak, you will see.

   “When you speak and you don't see something happening immediately, do not be discouraged.”

   • Mark 11:15
   • Mark 11:20-21

3. Have faith in God and speak to the mountain

   Jesus' answer was to have faith in God: whoever says to the mountain, not prays to it, and does not doubt in his heart will have what he says, and whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive it. He calls this a key scripture for receiving miracles, whether for someone's salvation, a changed life, a job or a promotion.

   “There are some mountains that's facing your life. Speak to it, and it will change.”

   • Mark 11:22-24

4. Light for God's people in dark times

   Responding to a testimony of a business that grew while others were downsizing during COVID, he says God's people are like Israel in Egypt, who had light when the rest of the land was dark. When it is dark for those without Christ, His children can trust and depend on God.

   “When it's dark for the people out there that don't have Christ, there'll be light for us as children of God.”

   • Exodus 10:23

5. Anyone who makes a demand on God

   He is saddened when ministers attack one another on television: keep your opinion to yourself and do not attack God's anointed, as David refused to attack Saul. From a story he heard Benny Hinn tell, he draws two lessons: God is no respecter of persons, and anyone, Christian or not, who makes a demand on God will be heard, because Jesus came to save the whole world.

   Illustration: At a packed crusade in the United States, a blind Hindu man and the relative guiding him walked round and round the full stadium until an usher let them in. He was brought to the front, Benny Hinn prayed, and both his eyes opened.

   “If they make a demand on God, God will listen.”

   • 1 Samuel 24:6
   • Acts 10:34

6. Keep making a demand: the woman and the crumbs

   A Gentile woman asked Jesus for healing and could have been offended by His answer, but she said that even the dogs get the crumbs, and she received her miracle. Don't let people from outside the church make a demand on God and receive while you, sitting in God's house with the same power and authority, grow too used to church to ask. Keep making a demand and God will do it for you.

   Illustration: He recalls a woman facing a life-or-death operation who listened to a voice note of his prayer just before going into theatre, recovered, and later shared her testimony at the church.

   “And when you make a demand, God will do it for you.”

   • Matthew 15:21-28

7. Abide in Him and don't give up

   Without God we can do nothing, but when we abide in Him and He in us, whatever we ask in His name He will give, so that our joy may be full. If something in your life will not move, keep speaking to that mountain until it does. The devil is a liar and God is not a man that He should lie, so what He has said He will perform.

   “The devil is a liar, and God is not a man that he should lie.”

   • Psalm 34:19
   • John 15:5
   • John 15:7
   • John 16:24
   • Numbers 23:19